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Billie Lee Details Her Incredible Journey ... and How One Stranger Changed Her Life Forever
The newest SURver gets real about her transition and falling in love at first sight with Lisa Vanderpump.
Billie Lee might be the newest SURver on the scene, but she's quickly become quite an inspiration to not only the folks she works with at Lisa Vanderpump's West Hollywood hotspot but also Vanderpump Rules viewers. And now the SUR hostess is reflecting on her childhood in Indiana and how it took a chance meeting with a stranger to change her life in the best way possible, leading her to realize she's transgender.
"I was bullied a lot," she told Too Fab. "I had childhood depression because of it, so I missed a couple years of grade school. I was afraid to go to the bathroom because boys would pick on me, and all the graffiti on the bathroom walls were about me. It was really traumatizing. It was comments like, 'Billie sucks dick.' Like, I didn't even know how to suck dick back then. I just knew that I was very feminine, and I was the only feminine boy in school, so they would call me awful things."
Billie later studied broadcast journalism at a college outside Chicago, but she faced new obstacles while trying to make her dream come true as she met with local news stations for internships. "They were like, 'You're too feminine for a small town. There's no way we can put you in front of the camera,'" she said. "I was kind of devastated because I couldn't have my career, so I masculined myself up. I shaved my head and tried to act more like a boy, and once again, the suicidal thoughts came back."
Eventually she moved to Los Angeles and along the way met the anonymous person who helped her realize who she is today. "One day, I was telling my story to someone at a bar, and they were like, 'Honey, you're trans.' And I was like, 'What?!' It really clicked at that moment," Billie said. "So I got a therapist just to make sure, and I started hormones."
Billie has the support of her mom and dad ("My parents love me and are my biggest fans.") as well as Lisa, noting that they "instantly fell in love" when they met one another.
Check out more Billie, below.
